Most of us are caught up in the energy draining habit of using our phone and especially social media compulsively.
These things aren’t inherently evil, although they are designed to ensnare us.
They are tools and a lot like the mind if we allow them to control us then we find ourselves (as the Buddha would say) in suffering.
I’ve taken a deep look into the nature of my own use (and abuse) of technology and this is what I found:
If we are in the pattern of using social media (and our) phones compulsively:
☆ It is key to break the attachment before remodelling the behaviour
↪ Go for a walk without your phone
→ Your strength of resistance will indicate how attached you are.
☆Leave your phone on Do Not Disturb
(until planned times when you want to engage)
☆Have a strong and clear intent for your use
ie; Check and respond to messages.
❗️TIP Use mantra “Get in, get out”❗️
Lets take a look at the reasoning behind this:
☆ Breaking the attachment – when we are attached we will obsessively pick up our phone and want to use it.
This is because we have experienced enough dopamine releases that we now recognise it as a source of dopamine (even when it isn’t).
When we want to feel better we turn to our phone however at this point it takes more from our wellbeing than it provides.
(…And there we have addiction in a nutshell)
☆Do Not Disturb – Avoiding constant notifications minimises the likelihood of finding ourselves unconsciously engaging.
Pretty straight forward, we want to set ourselves up for success and limiting temptations is going to help.
☆Intentionality – When an intent manifests into reality, it feels like an achievement.
Achievements return our energy to us (the energy we put into the actions of the intent).
Typical unintentional use of technology drains our energy.
Intentional use can even add to our momentum, and at the very least not drain our energy.
Typically we use technology without much purpose other than to get the dopamine hit, the problem is we usually don’t stop until its impacted our time and/or it has affected us negatively.
When we have an intention it gives us a purpose, once we have achieved that purpose we know it is time to discontinue use.
“Get in, Get out”
❗️TIPS❗️
‼️ Move frequently used apps like Facebook/instagram to a different page/screen and place in a different position (for example: top left instead of centre).
Our muscle memory has been trained 1000’s of times to unlock and go to this position so we will find ourselves doing it without realising.
If you end up in the Facebook app, it is too easy to get caught up in it.
Change the location and watch your self still unlock and go to open the apps that aren’t there 😄
⁉️ Certainty – Identify when you are pulling out your phone. What state are you in that leads to the desire.
Many would say boredom, I would say low certainty. Certainty is a concept I’ve expanded on in other posts.
But essentially we all like to feel certain of ourselves and what we are doing.
If we become uncertain of what we should be doing, we will revert to default patterns that create certainty:
Worker on a day off – goes drinking.
Night owl wakes early – goes back to bed.
Most people waiting in a line – pulls out phone.
If you bring awareness to your patterns around your phone use, you can recognise, change and design them how you want.
Healthier alternatives to using your phone to cure boredom/low certainty:
✧ Walk
✧ Meditation
✧ Exercise
✧ Journal
✧ Other pre-planned activities relevant to your own personal goals
If you want further help conquering social media, with further strategies and accountability contact me here